Year In Review 2012 Part 2: Everything Else and Awards

I won't lie, Part 1 of this post was a bit of a rambling, incoherent mess. Such are the problems with trying out a new format for something. Anyway, this post will probably adhere slightly more to my usual standard than that last piece of nonsense. So, awards, bests, worsts, and a top ten list which should probably have been posted like ten days ago on Beats but which has been sitting in the draft section fully completed just waiting for someone to click the post button. All of these and more to be found below.

Biggest Tosser of the Year 2012

That's right, it's Hyadain. Don't get me wrong, I think the guy's fucking gifted, and while maybe not quite a genius, he's only a few rungs down from it. So why's he the biggest tosser of the year? Well, a few reasons. I've decided that I can't give the award to Tsunku yet again (face it, he'd probably get it every year), and I don't think any idols have pissed me off a great deal this year. AkiP has been at his trolling-best, so that basically leaves Hyadain. So, how has he been a cunt this year? Well, his (incredibly bloated) solo album was finally released. It contains some very good songs (plus decent cameos in some of them from other artists he's written for, including a lulzy Momoclo appearance). It also contains one of the most sudden and out of place random Gothenburg Death Metal songs I've ever heard. The English version is here, but the album version is in JP which sounds slightly less awkward. However, the main problem with this album is that there are 27 tracks on it, containing no less than three versions of Kakakatakataomoi. Also, a great deal of the songs are frankly, shit. He could have had a very good one disc album, but instead we get a mediocre two disc set. If he had a record exec or even an executive producer to tell him he needs to excise some of the shit, we'd have a better album. Either that, or he needs to learn to self-critique more effectively. So yea, for that reason, completely unrelated to idols really, he's the biggest tosser of 2012. Still awesome though.

Biggest WTF ARE YOU ON NOW DEVIN!? of 2012



Really speaks for itself doesn't it?

Best Non-Prog Metal Band of 2012

And no, I'm not even fucking kidding. Normal metal this year sucked ass. Babymetal even had some prog tendencies (Ii ne, for example, having 11 consecutive sections before repeating any), but Headbanger and now the early PV release for Ijime Dame Zettai just rocks fucking harder than anything since I can remember. Plus, add to that the fact that metal this year was just plain boring as fuck (I'd say the best non-progressive metal album this year was Mors Principium Est's ...And Death Said Live, and I fucking hate melodeath most of the time), makes the bringers of the Mosh Pit of Chaos probably the best exponent of the genre this year. Even though most trve kvlt grim necro metalheads hate them, at least their music transcends genre boundaries, takes risks and just does not give a single fuck. INFERNAL HAILS!

A Year In Review 2012, Part 1: Idols

So, this year I'm being slightly lazy. Also slightly unfair to you, the reader, as I'm going to make you trawl through all my year review on all idol groups in just one post, whereas in previous years I've kept it all separated into nice little easy to consume and ignore posts. However, this year I've decided that my approach of yesteryear is no longer even possible. How could it be, with an ever expanding number of idols that demand my attention, all of which having PVs and songs and personalities and catchphrases and so on to keep up with? Indeed, my excess had to reach its end at some point. This year, for example, the 48 family post would have been especially ridiculous had I kept the previous format. AKB alone had 20 PVs from singles, then an extra 3 for old songs and I don't know how many for Team Surprise, but I think it was 12. SKE had 12 (IIRC), NMB had 16, HKT had 1. By this point we're already at 64 and that's without any subunits or soloists. I think everything needs to end and at this point, merely attempting to come to terms with the sheer number of PVs resulted in my mind breaking.

So, as a result, you will see a slimlined version of my previous posts. I will take each group, and give my opinion on which has been their best song, their worst song, and best and worst PVs. With some of the bigger groups I'll also probably say which is their best standout moment or something. This saves me time and effort, which is good. After that I'll do another post of my usual tirade of weird and wonderful awards. So, into the fiery pit we descend once more...

WARNING: Embedded video heavy.

Passpo☆ - One World review

And at long last it ends. The review reign of terror that has lasted since August has come to an end. And what better way to end it than with the group that I've always meant to review properly, but just never got around to doing.

So yes, Passpo. Those flight attendant people who randomly got number one on the single charts last year thanks mostly to releasing about 15 versions of one single. But hey, if it works. Music-wise they're right up my street. Good pop, good rock, and a mix of both with damn good hooks and not bad vocal wise. So, onwards to the review.

Preamble: Blue, white and silver. Very airline-like. I just hope their seats recline and that boarding times aren't as bad as all the airlines I've been on lately.

BiS - IDOL is DEAD review

So, at last we're reaching the end of this long run of nothing-but-reviews that has plagued this blog for a while now. Only one album review left. I might touch on TGS and SKE albums in the year-in-review posts, but other than that it's only this and Passpo left now.

Anyway, BiS. I've gone into what I sort of like about BiS on Beats a few times, but I've never reviewed anything properly of theirs before. Thus this time, I will.

I'm also going to link any relevant PVs because they do help somewhat in understanding BiS' absolute psychosis.

Preamble: Cover fits well, Pour Lui looks a bit screwy, Wacky looks stoned off her tits, Yuffie's shadow cleavage is amusing, and Nozomi and Michael just look a bit like wounded puppies that want you to stop hitting them with a baseball bat that has nails coming out of it. That rather gory description aside, to the music.

SUPER☆GiRLS - Everybody JUMP!! review

So, I'm back again, once more later than I could have possibly imagined. Still 3 reviews left plus four year-end posts plus a lot of other shit to deal with in under 3 weeks until my life changes irrevocably once more. Anyway, next up is Super Girls, the long long awaited review which I've been procrastinating on for 10 months. Go me.

Preamble: So, I gave their last album, a decent effort, 7/10. Can they improve upon it? The cover looks pretty boring, but it's Avex. They're too busy throwing money at TGS who sell hardly anything compared to Super Girls. But oh well...